Interview with Elmer Whitaker, February 18, 1989

Interview Summary

Elmer Whitaker operated a coal mine in Perry County, Kentucky. Both his father and grandfather were coal miners. Whitaker recalls growing up in a coal mining town in Perry County and going to school at Cornettsville and later at Viper High School. He graduated from high school just after the end of World War Two when he was sixteen. He went to work for the old Diamond Block mine operated by Mr. Rowell and Mr. M.K. Evelyn. His first job consisted of loading coal with a shovel, and he describes the safety processes in the mines when he starting working.

Whitaker and his father soon bought interest in a coal mine in Wooten in Leslie County, Kentucky. He describes working with his father in this mine for as many as seventeen hours a day. Whitaker recalls the evolution in safety procedures in the mines throughout the years and mentions state and federal safety inspectors. He also describes the mechanization of the mines.

Interview Keyword

Coal Operators

Interview LC Subject

Appalachian Region Coal miners Coal mines and mining--Appalachian Region Whitaker, Elmer, 1928- Whitaker, Elmer, 1928- --Interviews

Interview Rights

All rights to the interviews, including but not restricted to legal title, copyrights and literary property rights, have been transferred to the University of Kentucky Libraries.

Interview Usage

Interviews may be reproduced with permission from Louie B. Nunn Center for Oral History, Special Collections, University of Kentucky Libraries.